Not every Hillel offers students a teacher whose work won a Golden Globe Award or was nominated for an Academy Award.

Thanks to a grant from the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation, students at Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) will have a chance to work one-on-one with David Polonsky, art director for the Israeli film Waltz With Bashir, as an artist-in-residence during the spring semester at Brown/RISD Hillel. Read full story >>

(PHOTO: David Polonsky, art director of the Oscar-nominated film 'Waltz With Bashir' with Brown/RISD Hillel Gallery Project co-chairs Talia Rozensher and Madeline Jacobs (left to right). )

Hillel student activists are constantly challenged to find new ways to educate their campuses about Israel, often in the face of outspoken detractors, as we have seen at York University in Toronto. Each campus is different and requires sensitivity and creativity.

That's why the Brown/Rhode Island School of Design Hillel program with David Polonsky is so effective. Bringing this world-class artist to Providence enables students on two different campuses to interact meaningfully and appropriately with Israel. For more pro-Israel activities on campuses, read Hillel Supports Israel on Campus.

David Polonsky isn’t the only film celebrity brought to town by Hillel. Emory Hillel brought the Blues Brothers – Dan Aykroyd and Jim Belushi -- to Atlanta. Be sure to check out what the former Ghostbuster had to say about Hillel.

Max W. Orenstein, Editor
Hillel Campus Report
campusreport@hillel.org